Portfolio: Region sees increase in home sales, prices

Wednesday, June 19, 2013

The greater Philadelphia real estate market, including Chester, Bucks, Delaware, Montgomery and Philadelphia counties, experienced some positive trends compared to May of last year, according to The Long and Foster Market Minute reports. In May, the number of homes sold, as well as sale prices, increased throughout the region while inventory continued to decline.

In Chester County, 615 homes sold, up 23 percent over May of 2012. The median sale price of $297,940 was up 5 percent, while the overall inventory of 3,017 homes was down 20 percent. The average home sold spent 74 days on the market.

“In the Philadelphia region, the residential real estate market continues to improve,” Long and Foster Companies President and COO Jeffrey S. Detwiler said. “Job growth, home affordability and consumer confidence, among other market conditions, remain on the upward trend. Many considering buying a home are researching what their local markets have to offer.”

K’Nex CEO named one of nation’s best

Montgomery County-based K’Nex Brands, a construction toy company, announced that, K’Nex and Rodon Group President and CEO Michael Araten has been named one of the top 100 CEO Leaders in STEM by STEMConnector.

“I am humbled and honored to be named one of the 100 CEO Leaders in STEM by STEMConnector,” said Araten. “STEM is the heart of innovation and innovation drives growth, profit and jobs of the future. K’Nex and Rodon work actively with local community colleges and technical schools to ensure that students graduate with the skills they need to work at companies like ours. And through the K’Nex’s education line, we are providing teachers with a complete STEM solution, enabling them to teach critical concepts in sequence and demonstrate real world applications. To be recognized with these other fine CEOs is a testament to the hard work and dedication of our highly skilled employees.”

Reading college earns nonprofit honor

Reading’s Albright College was named Small Nonprofit of the Year by Foundation and Endowment Money Management as part of the publication’s 12th annual Foundation and Endowment Investment Awards.

The publication, an arm of Institutional Investor magazine, praised the college for careful management of its $54 million portfolio.

“Albright has been able to work around the private equity market where access has been notoriously difficult for smaller funds,” it wrote. “The endowment has been a tiny but savvy player and has developed connections that have allowed it to enjoy unprecedented access to private equity deals.”

The College’s internally managed endowment enjoyed returns over the last half-decade that outpaced those of institutions with much larger funds, according to the 2012 NACUBO-Commonfund Study of Endowments.

Founded in 1856, Albright College is a nationally-ranked, private college with a liberal arts curriculum with an interdisciplinary focus. Albright enrolls about 1,600 undergraduates in traditional programs, another 800 adult students in accelerated degree programs and 100 students in the master’s program in education.

Pa. guardsman sues Target over ‘no show’ firing

PITTSBURGH (AP) — A member of the Pennsylvania Army National Guard has sued Target Corp., saying he was wrongly fired from one of the chain’s Pittsburgh-area stores for violating its “no-call, no-show” policy while he was on a two-week training assignment in Virginia.

Andrew Lanier claims in the federal lawsuit filed Wednesday in Pittsburgh that he told his supervisors about the training duty in October 2011 only to be told when he returned that he was fired for not calling out each and every day he was gone.

Lanier and his attorneys contend that his firing violates the Uniformed Services Employment and Reemployment Rights Act, which is meant to safeguard the civilian jobs of military personnel who are called away for mandatory duties.

“A promise has been made to protect the jobs of those who have chosen to honorably serve in this country’s military reserves and this lawsuit is intended to ensure that such promise is kept,” attorney Timothy O’Brien said in a statement.

Target spokeswoman Molly Snyder said the Minneapolis-based retail chain was working to respond to the lawsuit, in which Lanier seeks at least $75,000 in damages, including back pay and reinstatement.

Lanier was hired by target in April 2011 and worked at its store in North Fayette Township, a Pittsburgh suburb. His mandatory training was at Fort Pickett, Va. Lanier contends he was fired the day after it ended and told he had violated the “no call, no-show” policy “by failing to notify Target on each day of his military leave that he would be absent from work on that day due to such leave.”

Lanier contends he had told his team leader and at least two store managers that he was required to report for duty in Virginia as well as notifying Target through an electronic time off request system the corporation maintains, the lawsuit said. Finally, Lanier said he gave a copy of his “active duty pre-deployment training” to store managers.